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- May 14, 2013
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**disclaimer: I read the book before watching the movie, I MIGHT spoil some aspects of it. Read at your own risk**
As I have recently started running a Zombie Apocalypse loadout, I thought that I would post this article which I wrote for a website a few months ago, but never got around to uploading. Enjoy! Please note that this is a LONG post. Just so you know what you are getting into.
In my opinion, this year's best "summer movie" is the Brad Pitt film "World War Z". The film is one of those oh-so common zombie apocalypse movies nowadays. It won't go winning any awards for originality, but the film is an action-packed romp nonetheless.
What confuses me though, is why the film has got such poor reviews. It's Rotten Tomatoes score stands at a 67% critical approval rank, with 71% of audience members enjoying it, makes this film an above average watch- by critical opinion anyway.
I am of the opinion that it deserves a better score (I know that a single forum post will not change it) and want to express why.
*I'll try to keep plot spoilers to a minimum, but there may still be some from here until the end of the forum post*
Pitt plays a washed up special forces soldier (Dirk Steel style), who is tasked with travelling around the world, trying to find a cure to the virus that is turning people
The film opens with a massive action scene in Philadelphia (I think) which I appear in- it was filmed in Glasgow, after all. This scene has a VERY convincing zombie turning- which is quite difficult to watch without squirming in your seat.
After this, Pitt's character (Gerry) moves inside of a building with minimal lighting. When I was watching this sequence, I thought that my brother would shit himself. It is SO tense as you know that there are Zs in the same area as Gerry and his family. There are a few "Jumpscares " & "Screamers" in this part, which did remove from the overall tension of the scene, but I was starting to feel the same sort of emotions that I was feeling when watching 'Signs' for the first time.
Anyway, the escape from PhiliGlasgow onto a warship where Gerry is tasked with going out as part of a research team. On the ship, there are quite a few character names which refer to characters from the book- something which I spent time trying to spot, because I'm sad like that.
After this, the team go to Korea, where the team find out about the "origins" of the plague. There is also an overlong sequence in which someone pulls out one his own teeth- which was grisly, to say the least- to present a point. As they are about to escape from the compound that the team are in, Gerry's wife calls him on his sat-phone, alerting every Z in the vicinity of their position. They get away and head to Iraq (I THINK. IT IS EITHER IRAQ OR IRAN) which has been walled off to allow a safe zone to be formed.
*as I said, I'm keeping spoilers to a minimum, so the next section won't be in much detail*
After all hell breaks loose, Gerry is forced to cut someone's hand off- which is a very shocking scene to watch, at least in my opinion.
after a scene on an aeroplane, Gerry ends up in Whales at a top secret research base, where the climatic 45 minutes occur.
The ending reminded me of that scene in Shaun Of The Dead when they are trying to get into the pub (see, I didn't spoil anything. Just hinted at it!)
After watching it, and my heart rate slowed a bit, I wondered to myself why it got such mediocre reviews. I remeber a review a while back which even said that it was a very good film- 4 or even 5 star material- but the reviewer said that he couldn't possibly give it such a high score as it didn't stand true to the source material. In the end, he gave it 3 stars. And it is this type of biggotism which pisses me right off.
He was right, of course.
The film is nothing like the book- World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War- but that didn't matter to me. The film is great in its own right and does not deserve to be panned in the way that it is because it shares a name with a successful social commentary of a book.
If you have taken the time to read this far, THANK YOU! I have put about an hour into writing so far.
I did enjoy the book more than the action/horror film released earlier this year. The book is cleverly written, so well researched and delivers a good message.
OK. I'm done writing. For now. Let me know. What you thought of the film and book.
All comments on the modern Zombie movie are also most welcome.
Delta X-Ray out.
As I have recently started running a Zombie Apocalypse loadout, I thought that I would post this article which I wrote for a website a few months ago, but never got around to uploading. Enjoy! Please note that this is a LONG post. Just so you know what you are getting into.
In my opinion, this year's best "summer movie" is the Brad Pitt film "World War Z". The film is one of those oh-so common zombie apocalypse movies nowadays. It won't go winning any awards for originality, but the film is an action-packed romp nonetheless.
What confuses me though, is why the film has got such poor reviews. It's Rotten Tomatoes score stands at a 67% critical approval rank, with 71% of audience members enjoying it, makes this film an above average watch- by critical opinion anyway.
I am of the opinion that it deserves a better score (I know that a single forum post will not change it) and want to express why.
*I'll try to keep plot spoilers to a minimum, but there may still be some from here until the end of the forum post*
Pitt plays a washed up special forces soldier (Dirk Steel style), who is tasked with travelling around the world, trying to find a cure to the virus that is turning people
The film opens with a massive action scene in Philadelphia (I think) which I appear in- it was filmed in Glasgow, after all. This scene has a VERY convincing zombie turning- which is quite difficult to watch without squirming in your seat.
After this, Pitt's character (Gerry) moves inside of a building with minimal lighting. When I was watching this sequence, I thought that my brother would shit himself. It is SO tense as you know that there are Zs in the same area as Gerry and his family. There are a few "Jumpscares " & "Screamers" in this part, which did remove from the overall tension of the scene, but I was starting to feel the same sort of emotions that I was feeling when watching 'Signs' for the first time.
Anyway, the escape from PhiliGlasgow onto a warship where Gerry is tasked with going out as part of a research team. On the ship, there are quite a few character names which refer to characters from the book- something which I spent time trying to spot, because I'm sad like that.
After this, the team go to Korea, where the team find out about the "origins" of the plague. There is also an overlong sequence in which someone pulls out one his own teeth- which was grisly, to say the least- to present a point. As they are about to escape from the compound that the team are in, Gerry's wife calls him on his sat-phone, alerting every Z in the vicinity of their position. They get away and head to Iraq (I THINK. IT IS EITHER IRAQ OR IRAN) which has been walled off to allow a safe zone to be formed.
*as I said, I'm keeping spoilers to a minimum, so the next section won't be in much detail*
After all hell breaks loose, Gerry is forced to cut someone's hand off- which is a very shocking scene to watch, at least in my opinion.
after a scene on an aeroplane, Gerry ends up in Whales at a top secret research base, where the climatic 45 minutes occur.
The ending reminded me of that scene in Shaun Of The Dead when they are trying to get into the pub (see, I didn't spoil anything. Just hinted at it!)
After watching it, and my heart rate slowed a bit, I wondered to myself why it got such mediocre reviews. I remeber a review a while back which even said that it was a very good film- 4 or even 5 star material- but the reviewer said that he couldn't possibly give it such a high score as it didn't stand true to the source material. In the end, he gave it 3 stars. And it is this type of biggotism which pisses me right off.
He was right, of course.
The film is nothing like the book- World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War- but that didn't matter to me. The film is great in its own right and does not deserve to be panned in the way that it is because it shares a name with a successful social commentary of a book.
If you have taken the time to read this far, THANK YOU! I have put about an hour into writing so far.
I did enjoy the book more than the action/horror film released earlier this year. The book is cleverly written, so well researched and delivers a good message.
OK. I'm done writing. For now. Let me know. What you thought of the film and book.
All comments on the modern Zombie movie are also most welcome.
Delta X-Ray out.
